Elon bursts ahead, survives Colgate

Published: Sunday, November 18, 2012 at 12:24 AM.

ELON — The theme for the Elon men’s basketball team was to be aggressive in Saturday afternoon’s Maui Invitational mainland game against Colgate.

After a seesaw first half, the Phoenix answered coach Matt Matheny’s call.

Thanks to an explosive couple minutes in the second half, Elon opened a 21-point lead and held on for an 81-72 victory at Alumni Gym.

Elon (2-1) used a 15-3 run in a span of a little more than three minutes in the first few minutes of the second half to build what eventually became a 20-point lead.

“It was very aggressive. That’s definitely the word of the day,” said Elon guard Austin Hamilton. “(The goal) was to go out and initiate first. The start of the second half, that dictates the rest of the game.”

After the teams traded misses to start the second half, Elon junior Ryley Beaumont drained a 3. A Colgate (1-3) turnover then led to a thunderous one-handed dunk by forward Lucas Troutman.

The Phoenix wasn’t finished as Troutman blocked a shot on the next possession. When Beaumont drained another 3, less than a minute after his first one, Colgate coach Matt Langel needed a timeout.

ELON — The theme for the Elon men’s basketball team was to be aggressive in Saturday afternoon’s Maui Invitational mainland game against Colgate.

After a seesaw first half, the Phoenix answered coach Matt Matheny’s call.

Thanks to an explosive couple minutes in the second half, Elon opened a 21-point lead and held on for an 81-72 victory at Alumni Gym.

Elon (2-1) used a 15-3 run in a span of a little more than three minutes in the first few minutes of the second half to build what eventually became a 20-point lead.

“It was very aggressive. That’s definitely the word of the day,” said Elon guard Austin Hamilton. “(The goal) was to go out and initiate first. The start of the second half, that dictates the rest of the game.”

After the teams traded misses to start the second half, Elon junior Ryley Beaumont drained a 3. A Colgate (1-3) turnover then led to a thunderous one-handed dunk by forward Lucas Troutman.

The Phoenix wasn’t finished as Troutman blocked a shot on the next possession. When Beaumont drained another 3, less than a minute after his first one, Colgate coach Matt Langel needed a timeout.

In 48 seconds, the Phoenix had turned a six-point lead into a 14-point advantage.

“That series right there, that’s huge. That gets the crowd going and gets us going, too,” said Troutman, who led Elon with 18 points and had seven blocked shots.

It was an energy boost that was sustained long enough for the Phoenix to build a 69-49 lead with 9:07 left.

“We got a little tentative when they went zone,” Matheny said. “We’re a good zone offensive team, but that can happen in a game.”

Elon guard Jack Isenbarger, who scored 12 points in a 19 minutes limited by foul trouble, said it was a matter of being slightly careless.

“I think after we made the big run and got up by 20 we got a little casual with the basketball … and didn’t look to score like we had been,” Isenbarger said. “We weren’t attacking the same way.”

A 3-pointer by Colgate’s Damon Newsome cut Elon’s lead to 74-68 with 1:24 left, but free throws by Hamilton and Troutman ended any comeback hopes for Colgate.

“We’re thrilled with the victory,” Matheny said. “We wish the end of the game wasn’t as close as it was, but we played aggressive. And that was our No. 1 goal coming in.”

Elon closed what was a back-and-forth first half with a short burst of energy to take a 41-35 halftime lead. Baskets from Troutman and Tony Sabato in the final 90 seconds, along with a charge drawn by Josh Bonney, helped Elon take confidence to the locker room.

The first half featured eight lead changes, with the biggest lead being an early 13-6 lead for Colgate.

Colgate’s Murphy Burnatowski ended up with 18 points, tied with Troutman for the game-high, but missed all six of his shots in the second half.

-- TIP-INS …: Bonney, a fifth-year senior, supplied an assist along with a drawn charge in the last minute of the first half. … After scoring eight points in each of his first two games, Elon freshman Tanner Samson hit four 3-pointers for 12 points. … Troutman became the third different player in three games to lead Elon in scoring. … Matheny was pleased with his team’s defense, especially in the second half. Colgate was 22-for-58 from the field.

-- FLORIDA ATLANTIC 64, COPPIN STATE 61: In the second game, a shot by Coppin State’s Patrick Cole at the buzzer fell short and Florida Atlantic hung on. Florida Atlantic led by 25 points at halftime, but Coppin State rallied to tie the game in the last minute.

Florida Atlantic freshman guard Stefan Moody, who is the school’s first Parade All-American, made a pair of free throws to break the tie and became the eventual game-winners.